Not a single good deed amounts to anything for the unconverted. They are like filthy rags. "All of us have become like one who is unclean, and all our righteous acts are like filthy rags; we all shrivel up like a leaf, and like the wind our sins sweep us away." (emphasis added, Isaiah 64:6)

"But when the kindness of God our Savior and His love for mankind appeared, He saved us, not on the basis of deeds which we have done in righteousness, but according to His mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewing by the Holy Spirit, whom He poured out upon us richly through Jesus Christ our Savior, so that being justified by His grace we would be made heirs according to the hope of eternal life." (emphasis added, Titus 3:4-7)

Christian pastor and songwriter, Steve Camp writes:

This is one of the richest passages of our great salvation we have in Christ Jesus our Lord found anywhere in all of Scripture. Notice the banner of our salvation surmised in three key words: He saved us… This again is cause for great humility. We couldn't save ourselves not [even] on the basis of deeds which we have done in righteousness. Our best works, our best religious works are filthy rags (Isaiah 64:6) sufficient only to damn us to hell, but save us? Never! This is the nail in the coffin of Romanism-of any good works/human achievement system of obtaining favor with God. All our good works, even religious ones, are nothing but rubbish, human excrement compared to knowing Christ Jesus as Lord of our lives by grace through faith alone (cp, Phil. 3:1-8). We were only saved according to His mercy (not our works); by the washing and renewing of the Holy Spirit (not by our merits plus grace or our works plus faith); through Jesus Christ our Savior (not through a surrogate Christ in the Roman Church; or Mary; or Papal infallibility); justified by His grace (not through infused righteousness of works, but through the imputed righteousness of Christ alone) made heirs according to the hope of eternal life (not through the suffering in purgatory to be purged of our sins and then maybe one day will be made good enough to enter glory). We have hope beloved, eternal hope, in the Lord alone!

When Jesus, the perfect Son of God, came to earth to offer Himself as a sacrifice for sin, He flung the door to salvation wide open to all. Alistair Begg describes what he calls, the "Hinge of Salvation."